here - Health Promotion Agency

The early weeks: your baby
WHAT YOU CAN DO
•
126
You can contact your
midwife or health visitor
for advice. Keep their
phone numbers where
they can be reached
easily.
• You can phone your
GP. Your GP may be
able to advise you over
the phone or may suggest
you bring your baby
along to the next surgery.
Most GPs will try to fit
a young baby in
without an appointment,
although it may mean a
wait in the surgery.
If you’re really worried
about your baby, you
should always phone your
GP for help immediately,
whatever the time of day or
night. There will always be
a doctor on duty even if it
is not your own GP.
THE ‘GLASS TEST’
Press the side or bottom of
a glass firmly against the
rash – you will be able to
see if the rash fades and
loses colour under the
pressure (see photo). If it
doesn’t change colour, contact
your GP immediately.
I LLNESS
It’s sometimes difficult to tell at first
when a baby is ill, but you may have a
funny feeling that things aren’t quite
right. If you’re at all worried, ask for
help. You are not fussing. It’s far better
to be on the safe side, particularly with
a very small baby. Trust your own
judgement. You know your baby best.
VERY URGENT PROBLEMS
Sometimes there are more obvious
signs that your baby is not well.
Contact your doctor at once if your
baby:
• makes jerky movements – this is
a fit or convulsion;
• turns blue or very pale;
•
has quick, difficult or grunting
breathing, or unusual periods of
breathing, for example, if your
baby breathes with pauses of over
20 seconds between breaths;
• is very hard to wake, or unusually
drowsy, or doesn’t seem to know
you;
•
develops a rash of red spots
which do not fade and lose
colour (blanch) when they are
pressed. (See the ‘Glass Test’.)
This may be the rash of
meningococcal septicaemia – an
infection in the blood. There
may not be any other symptoms.
Your baby may need treatment very
quickly. If you can’t get hold of your
GP at once, dial 999 for an ambulance
or take your baby to the Accident
and Emergency Department of your
nearest hospital as quickly as possible.
PROBLEMS THAT
COULD BE SERIOUS
• If your baby has a hoarse
cough with noisy breathing,
is wheezing, or cannot breathe
through the nose.
•
If your baby is unusually hot,
cold or floppy.
• If your baby cries in an unusual
way or for an unusually long time
or seems to be in pain.
•
If you notice any bleeding from
the stump of the cord or from
the nose, or any bruising.
• If your baby keeps refusing feeds.
•
If your baby keeps vomiting a
substantial part of feeds or has
frequent watery diarrhoea.
Vomiting and diarrhoea together
may mean your baby is losing
too much fluid, and this may
need prompt treatment.
• If your baby develops jaundice
(looks yellow) when he or she is
over a week old, or has jaundice
which continues for over two
weeks after birth (see page 113).
If you have seen your GP and your
baby is not getting better or seems to
be getting worse, tell your GP again
the same day. If you become very
worried and can’t get hold of your
GP, or your GP can’t get to you quickly
enough, dial 999 for an ambulance
or take your baby to the Accident
and Emergency Department of the
nearest hospital.